


In The Woods Somewhere

by WerewulfTherewulf



Series: SFRE fills [2]
Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, Not Related, Sick Fíli, Wood Nymph! Kili, terminal illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-15
Updated: 2015-09-15
Packaged: 2018-04-20 05:17:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,013
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4775069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WerewulfTherewulf/pseuds/WerewulfTherewulf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kili finds an unwelcome guest in his home, and has every intention on ridding himself of the pest. Instead, he ends up with a memorable relationship that will stay with him for the whole of his immortal life.<br/>---<br/>-Lumberjack Fili, wood nymph kill, stop cutting down my home!-<br/>Fill for the raffle challenge</p>
            </blockquote>





	In The Woods Somewhere

**Author's Note:**

> Hover over the Irish words + phrases for translation :)

Kili's eyes flew open, his regularly dark brown eyes now an angry, luminescent and bright green. He leaned up onto an elbow and rubbed at his aching heart. Someone was cutting down trees in his forest, his _home!_ Fury surged through his chest and he climbed to his feet, his long-resting limbs groaning like shifting trees. But first he needed to wake up properly so he could confront this blight without yawning. His glowing eyes faded back to brown and as he stretched out his arms, the vines that had grown around his body snapped and fell to the earth. He brushed off the moss and mushrooms from his arms, stomach and thighs and ruffled his hair to get rid of any critters lurking there.

He was covered in a healthy layer of dirt, and was happy to find out that the natural fires that help keep his home thriving had avoided him this year. Kili made a point to wake up at least once a year to check up on his home, and last season he had arisen like a disgruntled phoenix in ashes, but with no hair.

His home around him was as tranquil as ever, but Kili felt a slight irritating tug in his side, and he knew there was someone in his forest, _defiling_ it without his permission. He began strolling through the woods in the direction of the incessant tugging.

On the way he made sure to stop and greet all the families living there, even the stubborn badgers. They had mostly ignored him except to growl at him when he got close to their young, so he moved on quickly. Next were the little forest bunnies who were almost too kind to him. They swarmed around him and hopped on him when he sat down, sniffing and nosing at him. He couldn't hold back a grin as he stroked their soft fur and scratched behind their ears. After having a soft conversation he bid them farewell and sought out his favorite family, _a chuid sionnaigh_ , his foxes.

His red forest foxes never greeted him as enthusiastically as the rabbits or hedgehogs, but they were the most quietly affectionate. They always prodded him over to their den by nosing at his ankles and Achilles' tendon and groomed him or simply curled up on or around him, leading to all of them snoozing away together.

No naps for Kili today, though. Today he was on a mission. He apologized profusely to _Seamiar_ and _Tapa_ and _Chosdubh_ , his most devoted pups and left. After a few more animal friend encounters, Kili finally reached a small clearing, and the prickling in his side become much more insistent. There was a man right there in the glade, _his_ glade, hacking at a felled tree. He was less than twenty paces from Kili, but had not yet noticed the wood nymph. With a blink, Kili's eyes returned to their furious, glowing neon green. Stripes of glowing clover green materialized all over his dirty tanned body. His body stretched and grew like a tree until he was an additional three heads taller than the pale, blond intruder. He stepped forward out of the dark of the trees.

 ** _“bhfuil tú ag briseadh i! Saoire anois!”_** he shouted, his voice warped and echoing far and wide. The man startled horribly and dropped his axe, tripped over his own feet and fell on his ass. Kili glided ever closer, his body thrumming a strong aura. A torrential wind picked up, the flora, fauna and his hair wipping around wildly. They were plunged into a darkness where once was bright and sunny; any happy woodland ambience was dead and gone. **_“Saoire! ANOIS!!”_**

Kili watched as the man clambered back to his feet, any traces of fear gone, morphed into a determined glare. Kili continued onwards until he could reach out and touch the man. This trespassing stranger was paler than the average folk from the large village, and his eyes were sunken and had black circles beneath them. His breathing was shallow and he was covered in a light sheen of sweat that was more from the exertion of chopping wood. His hands were trembling just slightly. The wind around them died down and the glowing on Kili's form dimmed.

“You are dying,” he stated in the common tongue. This man was in Kili's isolated forest. The closest village was miles and miles away, but it was still the only place this person could be from, and the vast majority of those folk spoke only a crude and basic language.

The man swallowed but did not back down.

“You state the obvious. You are just a figment of my mind and a hallucination, another symptom of this damned illness no one told me about,” he replied.

“I am no illusion, commoner. I am Kili, protector of this land, and you do not belong here. Leave, now, mortal.” Kili demanded, his eyes brightening. The blond lowered himself down onto a shaky knee, his head bowed.

“Please, o' wood nymph of the Bindbole forest. I am sorry I have caused offense to you and damage to your home. I am sick and dying, I have been cast from my own home. I have nowhere to go. I beg of you, allow me to build a small cabin here where I may spend the rest of my days. I will likely not make it through the coming winter,” he pleaded quietly. Kili stood above him silently, not making a sound for several long moments.

“Fine,” he said finally, “you may stay. You may build your small hut and you may harvest the plant-life here to eat, but you may not hunt any animals. If you must, hunt the wild ones outside of my home. The day you die, your cabin will be torn down and your body left to the elements.”

Before the blond could thank him for his mercy, Kili's form dissolved into various small green leaves and clover that fluttered away in the wind.

  
  


It took the stranger almost a month to finish his cabin, Kili watching everything while hidden in the trees. Normally he would have gone back to hibernation by this time, but this man was intriguing to Kili. It had never happened to before to him, and he was curious. When the man needed mud for the mixture to cement the logs, Kili sent a small stream to run through the clearing. The blond found it the following morning and reacted with glee, immediately using it to his advantage. When he needed a fire, Kili made sure to unearth a few rocks, perfect for sparking a flame. When the weather dropped too low, Kili whispered into the ears of an old and dying bear, asking it to calmly lay itself to rest nearby. The stranger quickly skinned it for the hide, making it into a thick blanket and coat.

The night he finally finished, Kili appeared on his doorstep. He walked in to see the man sitting down by a fire in the small fireplace. He looked weaker than when Kili first met him, and the bowl of soup sitting on a corner table was cold and untouched.

“You should be resting. Preserve what little strength you have left. Winter is fast coming.”

The blond's head turned and he looked at Kili in mild surprise.

“I did not expect to ever see you again, Sir Kili...” he pondered.

“I am no Sir,” Kili quickly corrected. “I do not fall under any of your petty titles,” he dispensed an armful of herbs and vegetables onto the table next to the soup. “I brought you things,”

The ill man rested his head on the back of his chair, closing his eyes and humming in response.

“A housewarming gift! How kind of you.” they lapsed into silence, and Kili took the time to look around. It was sparse. No windows and only a single door. The soup consisted only of plants found around the glade, there was no meat. Kili realized he was probably too weak to hunt now.

“You're still here,” Kili looked up at the man, confused. “I was sure you'd be gone. I'm glad for it though, honestly… I was starting to get a bit lonely,” the blond closed his eyes again, taking a deep breath.

 _I forgot mortals need social stimulation… I can fix that,_ Kili thought, bursting into pink flowers and disappearing once again. The man opened his eyes and began to say something else, but noticed the flowers and saw that Kili had left.

“Oh,” he said sadly.

The next morning when the stranger was out in the woods relieving himself, he was again confronted by Kili, who was holding something to his chest secretively.

“Trespasser,” he called out, not hesitating to walk right up to the man. The sick blond flustered and hurried to tuck himself back into his breeches, his pale face reddening in embarrassment.

“Excuse you!” he gasped. When he calmed down a little he looked up to his companion. “Well good morning. Didn't expect to see you so soon. Or ever. What have you there?”

Kili closed the distance between them and gently placed a fox cub into his hands.

“I have brought you a fox cub. He is the runt of the litter and his mother does not want him. You should not be lonely anymore. Take good care of him!” he ordered. Petting the sleeping cub a little on its head, Kili took a step back.

“Oh! Well shit, thanks Kili, that's awfully nice of you-- beforeyougoagainmynameisFilibytheway!” the man rushed out just as Kili burst into a mass of green and brown butterflies.

Fili the stranger sighed, then looked down at his new pet. A tiny little orange thing it was, curled into the heat of his body and sleeping soundly.

“I don't know anything about caring for you...” he sighed, scratching it's head with a finger. Holding his new friend to his chest, he went back to his cabin.

The next few weeks Fili spent what little energy he had chopping wood for fire and taking care of Mud, his little fox. It would be winter soon and Fili knew he was nearing the end of his life. The sickness he had been stricken with was only slightly uncommon among his people, was thought contagious and was fatal. So Fili had been cast out once his symptoms began presenting themselves; fatigue, sporadic lesions in various places, memory loss and several others. It took him nearly two weeks to stumble upon Kili's forest and when Fili laid his eyes on it he knew it was a place he could die in peace.

At the end of the first week, Kili had returned. As he watched Fili from afar from day to day he grew more and more curious. He never much cared for humans, knowing them to be selfish, destructive heathens, but this Fili was something different. Kili watched as he left bread crumbs for birds or leftover veggies for the brave little rabbits, and how he always made sure his fox was right there behind him or close by and safe.

The stream proved useful in other ways for Fili that Kili had not thought about (much to his embarrassment), and he decided that watching Fili strip down and plop himself and the fox into it to bathe was his favorite. Seeing how happy the pup was from being scrubbed and massaged was something he could watch all day. The lack of belly-filling meals for over a month were starting to take their toll on Fili, his ribs and spine poking out from beneath his papery skin. He was not long for this world, and that worried Kili for the baby fox. After Fili's corpse was rotting in the sun, his fox would have no home to call his own. Kili grimaced but put the idea of keeping him for himself in the back of his mind. He traipsed over to the waning man bathing in the river and greeted him.

“Trespasser--”

Fili glanced up at him but then focused back on scrubbing dirt from Mud. “It's Fili,” he corrected kindly. His breathing had taken on a quiet but permanent wheeze since the last time Kili confronted him.

“Fili. You will be dead soon. I worry for my _sionnach_. I am thinking maybe it would be best if I take him back now, so that--”

“What? No! You can't take Mud from me!” Fili snapped, devastated at the thought.

“I most certainly can, and I will!” an immature flare of irritation shot through Kili's chest for an instant. Fili sighed, looking dejected.

“Yes, you're right. But I wish you wouldn't. I have grown rather attached to Mud, and he to I. While his companionship is not the same nor as fulfilling as it would be were he a Man like myself, I cherish his presence. Please, Kili, do not take him from me. I fear I would die of loneliness before my sickness takes me,”

A million thoughts flew through Kili's head, but the first thing out of his mouth was, “Mud? What kind of name is that?” he raised a dirt-caked eyebrow. Fili smiled bashfully.

“It is because of his black little paws. They look like he has been constantly playing in the mud,” he snorted. Kili was taken aback.

“What an ungraceful name! You can't name him that. He'd be much better off with something in my own tongue… much more suitable. Something such as… … … … … … _Láib_.”

Fili and Mud both tilted their heads in the same direction curiously.

“It does sound nicer. What does it mean?” Fili asked. Kili huffed, crossed his arms and looked away to hide his pinkening cheeks.

“... Mud,” he grumbled, shrugging. Fili laughed loud enough to cause birds to fly away from a few trees and making Kili stare at him in wonder, though it left Fili to catch his breath. Hearing another being other than himself laugh (not that he did it much... only when his animal friends accidentally tickled him or told a particularly hilarious joke) was surreal and beautiful. He decided right then that he selfishly wanted to make Fili laugh as much as possible before he died. He rolled his eyes and glared at the ground beneath his feet. “Never said I was good with names,” he explained.

A bright smile from cracked lips stretched across Fili's face. “No, it's fine. I like it. How do you like it, _Láib_?” He looked down at the puppy in his arms, and in return Mud looked up at him, his nose booping Fili on the chin. Grinning, Fili returned to Kili. “He likes it, I think,”

After that, Kili began visiting every day. He would come and bring _Láib_ (and Fili) special treats, and he would sit with the blond asking questions about Men. It was rare for him to ever meet one himself, and who knows when it would happen next, after all. So he sat with Fili and they talked about their lives. Fili always perked up considerably when Kili showed up each day, and it made Kili feel… Happy. It was an odd but not unwelcome emotion in him. When asked about his own life, Kili was vague, if only because he spent a large chunk of it hibernating. He also insisted that it was nothing impressive or exciting compared to Fili's, who had gone on adventures and had many interest encounters to tell of. It did not take long for the pair to form a slight but strong bond of camaraderie between them.

“I do not understand love,” Kili declared one day. “Explain it to me, Fili,”

They were inside Fili's cabin now, sitting in front of the fireplace. Fili was leaning onto Kili, his energy sapped from the day, and _Láib_ was lying stretched out across Kili's shoulders, sleeping peacefully. The first snow had fallen days earlier, and now there was a layer of it on the ground outside and on the plants and trees. Even sitting by the warm fire and bundled up in layers of animal fur, the ever thinning Fili shivered.

“It's like...” Fili began, his voice raspy, “there are two kinds. Love for your friends and family, and then _love_. You love one person so deeply that you can not imagine your life without them. Your two hearts beat as one and even just thinking about them, any part of them, fills you with joy,” he gave a contented sigh and stared deeply into the crackling fire.

“You sound as if you are in love,” Kili stated quietly.

“Aye, I was once,” Fili closed his eyes and let his head fall onto Kili's shoulder, _Láib_ irritated when he was disturbed, but he was still awake.

“Once? What happened to your love?”

“He died of illness, same as I, five years ago this winter,”

 _Láib_ hopped down off of Kili and went over to Fili's bed, hopping up and curling back into a little ball.

“Oh,”

“Kili, I'm very tired. _Láib_ has the right idea. I think I'd like to rest for the night now,”

Kili nodded and helped Fili up and lead him over to his bed, helping to tuck him in. Fili thanked him quietly and drifted off almost immediately. _Láib_ got up and moved to the crook of Fili's arm, snuggling up close and snuffling in contentment.

Kili didn't return to see Fili for a long time. He worried for his friend, something that snuck up on him unexpectedly. He knew he should go and be with him, but he didn't want to see Fili waste away any longer. For two and a half weeks Kili stayed away before he finally gave in. A curious bear matron had ambled up to Kili, asking about Fili. She told him that the every present smokestack that had become commonplace had not been seen for days. Kili's chest filled with dread, and he hurried to the cabin. Letting himself in, Kili stopped and stared, frozen in fear as he gazed upon Fili. The blond was not visibly breathing at first, and he was laying on his back in bed with discomfort written upon his sunken face. Láib was lying by his head on the pillow.

“Fili,” the nymph called out, once, twice. Fili finally stirred, and his eyes cracked open.

“Kili,” he whispered. “How nice t' see you. 'm sorry I can't stand to greet you--”

“Don't be absurd.” Kili scolded, rushing over to sit on the edge of the bed. “I am sorry for staying away for so long,” he apologized.

“It's 'k,” Fili's eyes slid shut, “You're busy with takin' care of th'woods,” his voice was slurred, too fatigued to form proper words.

Kili shook his head, ashamed. “No. I have been hiding from you. I was afraid of you… watching you fade away. I have acquired a strange fondness of you and it hurts me now to think that you won't be here much longer. I am ashamed I have not been here to care for you,” he grabbed Fili's hand in his own. Fili squeezed Kili's hand and smiled weakly.

“Nah, I'd be 'fraid to see me too 'm sure. Bet 'm quite the looker now, eh?” he chuckled. Kili smiled along with him.

“You shall always be beautiful to me, Fili of Bree.”

“Ahh, not c'mpared t' you. Y'are one 'f a kind, truly. It was a real gift to get t' know you,”

Kili sighed.

“I am so selfish,” he shook his head. Fili looked at him curiously. “I love looking at you, and hearing your voice; your laughter. I don't want to lose it yet,”

The corner of Fili's eyes crinkled in his joy.

“'f I'd've known all it'd take to get a handsome wood nymph to flirt w'th me was t' be on my death bed, I'd've done it sooner,”

“Aye, but it's not too late. I'm not letting you go, not yet,”

A confused noise sounded from Fili's throat as Kili reached out and rubbed his thumb across his forehead, his eyelids, his throat and over his heart. The action left glowing, glittering stripes. Fili had no time to react. Kili leaned forward then and placed his mouth onto Fili's, simultaneously kissing him and breathing life back into the blond. When he sat back, he stared into Fili's eyes, which had gained a dim, green glow.

“What th' hell was that?” Fili grunted, unable to keep a weak grin from his face.

“I've abused my gifts… I've breathed life back into you. Your illness should abate, and then I can keep you all to myself,”

Fili laughed. “Ah, I see. So greedy. Tho' I s'pose I'd do the same 'f I was in yer shoes.”

“But I don't wear shoes,” Kili told him.

Fili laughed again. “I know. I's just a thing we say,” he cringed in pain suddenly. “Ah… fuck. S'rry Kili, I d'n't think 'm much company righ' now. Think I'll maybe sleep a little,”

Kili nodded. “Yes, sleep. You need the rest. You will live, and I will be here for you. I won't leave you,” he reassured. He never got a response, Fili was already dozed off.

True to his word Kili stayed with Fili and _Láib_ every day until the snow melted and new flowers bloomed. Every day Fili got better and better, regaining his strength. His body filled out thanks to Kili making him hearty stews, and the color returned to his cheeks. He and _Láib_ began joining Kili on his strolls through the forest, checking up on things. They'd hold hands as they went, Kili smothering him in sweet butterfly kisses (sometimes literally) and taking Fili to hidden Edens.

Their bliss lasted until the mid-summer, when Fili and Kili and _Láib_ lay side by side at the lakeshore, snoozing in the sun.

Fili stared at his mate. Kili was laying back with his arms behind his head, yawning widely.

“ _Daor_ … you've been doing that so often lately. Why are you so tired?”

Kili smiled sweetly at him.

“Ah… I am sorry, _mo ghrá_. I confess I have been awake much longer than normal, much longer than I ever intended to be,” he lamented.

Fili's eyebrows creased in his confusion. “We only just woke up a few hours ago, though,”

“Nay, not like that. I mean my long, deep sleep. Hibernation. I have been in the habit of only waking once a year for a few days over a century. _Tá brón orm_ ,”

“Oh… That is what you need then, isn't it. To go back to sleep?” Fili asked quietly.

Kili didn't reply for a long time, contemplating.

“… Yes, I'm afraid so,” he finally said.

“I understand. It is probably time I return home as well,”

Kili looked at Fili in horror. “You can stay here if you wish. You do not have to leave me!” he breathed.

Fili smiled. “Thank you, but if I stay, then it will be the other way around. You'll be leaving me, and I will be left all alone again,”

“But you will have _Láib_ ,” Kili argued weakly, reaching out to scratch the fox. Fili smiled sadly, but shook his head.

“You may not know the feeling, but loneliness… there is nothing worse in this world, I think. It is leaves you feeling hollow inside… a sorrow burrowed deep within you, and it's the only thing you feel when you're not numb from it. It's not something I can deal with again, I'm sorry,”

Kili's gaze dropped. “I understand,” he whispered.

They traveled back to Fili's cabin in silence, stopping outside the door.

“I don't think I can last another day awake,” Kili told him. Fili nodded.

“I figured as much, and I understand,”

Fili stepped forward, closing the distance between them and kissing Kili passionately. When he tried to step back, Kili pulled him into a tight embrace. It was obvious he was struggling to contain a yawn, making Fili smile.

“Go. You need your rest,” he ordered. Kili nodded and backed away. He stared straight into Fili's soul for a long moment before turning around and walking away. A few seconds later, he felt a little nipping at his heels. He looked down and saw Láib there, running after him.

“Ah, no, little _sionnach_ , you belong with Fili!” he crouched down and scooped him up, turning to look back at Fili.

“You take him. He won't be too safe if I take him to the large town with me,” Fili called out. Pursing his lips, Kili nodded. He turned back around and continued into the woods.

The pair traveled to and fro between trees, over streams and fallen logs, through old cobwebs. They even visited _Láib's_ family. His brothers and sisters were thrilled at the reunion, so much so that he thought it best if he left Láib there with his family. There wasn't much he'd be able to do for _Láib_ while he was in his deep slumber anyway.

Bidding farewell, Kili continued on. He walked another mile and a half until he reached the very center of his home. This was where he slept, directly in the middle. It made Kili feel more at peace than in any other spot. There was even a large indentation there in the earth, a perfect silhouette of Kili from where he slept in the same exact position, year after year after year. He plopped down ass first then assumed the position. The last thing he did was summon a blanket of leaves and moss, then darkness.

 

\--

 

Kili's eyes flew open, his regularly dark brown eyes now an angry, luminescent and bright green. He leaned up onto an elbow and rubbed at his aching heart. Someone was cutting down trees in his forest, his _home!_ Fury surged through his chest and he climbed to his feet, his long-resting limbs groaning like shifting trees. But first he needed to wake up properly so he could confront this blight without yawning. His glowing eyes faded back to brown and as he stretched out his arms, the vines that had grown around his body snapped and fell to the earth. He brushed off the moss and mushrooms from his arms, stomach and thighs and ruffled his hair to get rid of any critters lurking there.

Properly alert, he got straight to business, not even taking the time to greet his friends. The tug on his heartstrings led him towards a glen near the edge of his forest. There was a niggling in the back of his mind, for some reason this particular clearing was important. Much more important than any of the others, but for the life of him, Kili couldn't remember why! Old age seemed to be catching up to him, even though he was immortal.

When he reached his goal, he was met by an unwelcome sight. There was a short blond chopping wood in his clearing. Furious, Kili stormed forward, a torrential wind picking up and whipping debris around wildly. The man looked up at him sharply, horrified. He stumbled back.

“Kili!” he shouted. He stood his ground as Kili jolted to a stop, shocked. He quickly examined the man before him. Dry blond hair, pale blue eyes, skin stretched tight over a thin frame. The memories shot through him.

“Fili!” he gasped. He hurried forward and swept Fili up in a bear hug. “Fili, Fili, Fili...” he chanted, refusing to put the man down. “I can't believe you're back...”

Fili gladly returned the embrace, stepping back after a long moment. Kili further took in Fili's appearance. He was visibly older, with age lines around his eyes and mouth. How long had he been asleep? His eyes were sunken, his cheekbones protruding. His pallor was unhealthy, and his breathing was labored. Kili's heart plummeted.

“You're dying,” he whispered. Fili nodded grimly.

“Aye,” he confirmed. Kili grabbed his wrist.

“But I took it away, I made you healthy again! This shouldn't be happening!” Kili cried. Fili shook his head, shrugging.

“Well, it came back,” he sounded defeated.

Kili's hands shifted to Fili's shoulders.

“How long has it been? How long have you been back? _How long have I been sleeping?_ ” he questioned, incredibly upset.

“I haven't been back long. Your up-to-no-good radar is still in tip top shape. But you haven't woken since I left? Kili, that was seven years ago...”

Kili reeled back.

“What?! Seven years! Impossible! I can't believe I--” Fili grabbed his face with both his hands and pulled him into a loving kiss.

“Kili, calm yourself. It's over, it's done. We're here now. Let's move on,”

They were sitting in Fili's cobweb filled cabin now, the door open to let in light and fresh air.

“I could do it again. I could get rid of your illness. I could keep you alive so you can be with me forever!”

Sitting across from each other in old wooden chairs, they clutched their hands together. Fili shook his head.

“I don't think I could do that, Kili. I'm not that kind of person… I couldn't live forever,” Kili's head dropped, then raised slightly to stare at Fili through his bangs, resembling a hopeful child.

“Are you sure? You don't know until you try it out… maybe you just need time to think about it, to reconsider,” he said.

Fili just sighed and avoided Kili's gaze. They both looked up when a clicking sounded from the floor. Kili was ashamed that it took him so long to realize what it was, or rather, who it was. In his old age, _Láib's_ bright red hair had grayed. Kili was surprised that he was still alive. Most foxes would have been long dead by the time he woke up, but little _Láib_ had held on. He padded directly over to Fili, who didn't hesitate to pick him up and hold him close. Not long after, several small yips sounded from outside. Several small fox pups ran inside, hopping around excitedly. Fili's eyes lit up.

“Ah, you sly dog, I see you've been getting busy while I was away,” he laughed.

After three months, from the middle of Summer to the end of Fall, Fili had not changed his mind.

“I've lived a full life, my Kili,” he'd always say at Kili's prodding, “I'm happy with what I've experienced. I don't want to overstay my welcome on this planet and see it fall to ruin. The Earth is full of beauty, but… I'm exhausted. Imagine how tired I'll be in ten years. Fifty years. One hundred years...”

Kili would back off after that and feel guilty, but he selfishly wished he'd be able change Fili's mind.

By that time, Fili's breathing problems had returned and his muscles were always sore. It destroyed Kili inside every time Fili rejected any kind of help.

The week after that, the sporadic coughing fits started. Then the insomnia. His strength was sapped and when he wasn't hacking up spots of blood, it was coming out of his nose. He was deteriorating more rapidly than before, and it worried Kili beyond belief. He never let Fili have a moment to himself, which irritated Fili from time to time.

Three weeks before the first day of winter, Kili started to notice a very distinct smell that surrounded Fili. It smelled like… manliness. Like Fili. But sweeter. Like Death. Fili seemed to know too, and he began spending the days outside with Láib, basking in the cool forest air.

“I will stay with you until the end,” Kili told him, looking to the cabin. Fili shook his head.

“Don’t wanna die ‘n there. Let’s go for a walk,” he told Kili one particularly nippy afternoon.

Kili nodded and helped him up, throwing Fili’s arm over his shoulder.

“Where are we going?”

“I want t’ sleep,”

“By walking in the woods?” he asked. He received no reply. Slowly he helped Fili into the woods, _Láib_ following close behind. Kili did not mind the sluggish pace, and Fili seemed to enjoy it, soaking in the nature around him. Though surely in major pain, he had a genuine smile on his face that only grew wider every time birds chirped and flew by or other small critters made an appearance. After a while they reached a moss-covered fallen log, and Fili requested they take a break for a while and sit.

“Where do you want to sleep?” Kili asked him, taking his hands. “In the clover fields and fairy circles? By the waterfalls? Or perhaps in the glow worm caves,”

Fili shook his head.

“With you, dummy,” he said.

Kili pulled back, confused.

“What? I’m sorry _mo ghrá_ but we’ve discussed this before. I don’t have the necessary… bits and pieces to do such an act, and you are way too weak to begin with! I wouldn’t want to hurt you!”

Fili muffled his laughter in the crook of his arm to try and stifle his discomfort.

“No! Not like that,” he croaked. His smile fell and he and Láib shared a look. “We wanna fall ‘sleep with you, ‘til th’ world’s end,”

Realization dawned on Kili. “I see. Even if I said no, there’s no stopping this decision then, is there?” he asked slowly. Fili shook his head.

“ _Láib_ ‘n I are firm in our decision.”

“I see.” they were both equally solemn now, “are you ready then?”

Fili nodded. “‘S I’ll ever be. _Láib_?” the fox let out a quiet whine, and Fili then attempted to climb to his feet.

His knees gave out promptly and he landed back on the log with a grunt. Kili tutted.

“You are overexerting yourself. Let me carry you _mo ghrá_ ,” he bent over and put an arm underneath Fili’s knees and maneuvered him to lay against his chest. Fili was too tired to argue, and besides Kili smelled awfully nice. It wasn’t long before they reached the center of the forest. Fili made a noise in the back of his throat when he saw the Kili-shaped indentation in the ground.

“This is it?” he mumbled. “A hole in th’ ground? ‘xpected somethin’… nicer?”

Kili scoffed. “This is nice! _Láib_ , isn’t it nice?”

The fox ignored him, making Kili roll his eyes.

“Just jokin’, Kili, don’ get all worked up. It’s nice. Feels more tranquil here… ’s easier t’ breath,” Fili took in a deep breath through his nose, and slowly let it out. He closed his eyes and smiled.

Kili hummed in agreement and carefully lowered Fili to his hole in the ground gradually. It was a bit longer than him, but a quick flick of the wrist from Kili and it shaped itself to Fili’s body. Kili hurried to lay down next to him, the earth shifting beneath him to create a new hole for him to lay in. When _Láib_ curled up in a ball between them, the same thing happened. They were now a complete family of fossils, waiting to be buried and dug up.

“So cold,” Fili grumbled. Kili reached over and brushed away a clump of hair from Fili’s face, tucking it behind his ear. He summoned a large moss blanket, and it gently floated down onto them. Beneath their comforter Kili reached out and took Fili’s hand in his own, then shut his eyes. For several moments, the three of them lay in peace and tranquility.

“Kili?”

Kili hummed in acknowledgment.

“’m happy I met you. Thanks for lettin’ me stay,”

Kili sat up and bent over, placing a kiss on Fili’s forehead.

“It was the best decision I ever made,” he told the man simply. A minute smile twitched on Fili’s face.

“See you ‘n th’ other side?” Fili asked quietly as Kili readjusted himself.

 _No_ , Kili almost said, _I am immortal. I will not die and I will not see you on any other side._

“I’ll be waiting,” he said instead, clutching Fili’s hand tightly.

**Author's Note:**

> This is approximately 5k words longer than it was meant to be... tell me what you think? Thanks to FKT4E for the formatting help and... ... ???


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